If I had a choice of anywhere in the world to live, I would pick New Zealand (actually, I do have a choice…I should not forget that).

Kelly and I have explored NZ maybe 5 times now. Great memories…including our first significant earthquake (at magnitude 5.6):

I think I knew within a second that this was an earthquake. It wasn’t a shaking, it was if the van was on a giant slider, moving back and forth about 0.5-1 metres (my memory is prone to exaggeration, so perhaps a little less). It felt weird but was quite a pleasant sensation actually. It lasted around 1 minute all up. 

Afterwards there was a loud and sustained silence. We were in a van park just on the edge of town and as the movement had seemed significant I was listening intently to hear if there were any sounds of human distress….

Our First Earthquake

Without doubt it is a wild and beautiful country….full of Tanyas.

Here is a short 5 min video well worth your time.

Every season up to 5,000 trampers pass through the Mid-Caples Hut on New Zealand’s Greenstone-Caples Track. The lucky ones have met Tanya the Hut Warden, who revels in her duties out in the wilderness, but especially in sharing her passion for the outdoors and conservation with the trampers she meets.